Cause Marketing/Corporate Partnerships

A San Rafael-based nonprofit that does HIV prevention work abroad may be expanding its programs after receiving a $4 million grant from Google.

Google's sales team awarded the grant to Global Strategies for HIV Prevention "to help with access to vital medication and health services, especially for women and girls, in post-conflict areas of Africa," Google spokesman Jamie Yood said.

As charities are faced with an increased demand in services with just a slight recovery in giving in 2010, Blackbaud Inc. has a renewed focus on its corporate value "service to others makes the world a better place.” Just this year, the company participated in countless philanthropic initiatives; from donating over 4,469 toys during the holidays, and launching the Nonprofit Leadership Circle, to receiving the Green Business Pioneer Award.

NASA is looking to hand over control of U.S. science experiments on the International Space Station to a nonprofit organization, the space agency announced Monday.

The space agency issued a call for "an independent, nonprofit research management organization to develop and manage the U.S. portion of the station," according to the Dec. 2 statement.

Big companies are most likely to give to charity or undertake other social-responsibility efforts because they want to fight national or global problems, according to a new study by Weber Shandwick, a public-relations firm in New York.

But business-oriented goals, such as building consumer loyalty, were the primary drivers for many corporations.

In unique partnership with the website JustGive, Matthews is letting fans direct the proceeds of two upcoming Seattle shows to the charities of their choice. Every ticket is matched with an equal donation to philanthropy.

"The point is the act of giving and making the process available," he said in an interview. "I think it may make people feel a certain amount of power to see the ease of how you can give."

General Electric Co plans to donate about $50 million to community health clinics across the United States over the next couple of years, saying that urban clinics can play a role in the effort to slow the rapid rise of the nation's healthcare bill.

The largest U.S. conglomerate doubled its prior pledge on Wednesday as it announced $1 million in grants to two Atlanta clinics, bringing its total giving since it kicked off the drive last year to $8.5 million.

Thanks to the generosity of Verizon customers in Virginia who participated in the company's Check Into Literacy program, 32 literacy-focused nonprofit organizations throughout the commonwealth received grants totaling $45,787.

The Check Into Literacy program allows Verizon landline telephone customers to support literacy by checking a box on their monthly phone bills to make a $1 tax-deductible donation to promote literacy.  Verizon then distributes these donations to local literacy organizations that serve the individual states in which the customers live.

By the end of 2008, some 60 percent of small-business owners like Mr. Gumas reported that the economic downturn had affected their charitable giving, according to a study whose sponsors included The Chronicle of Philanthropy, a newspaper that covers nonprofit organizations. Tough times have compelled small-business owners like Mr. Gumas to rethink long-held business practices. But many are finding creative ways to continue their support for good causes — a practice that can have positive side effects. Here are some suggestions based on the experiences of small-business owners.

Representative Joe Baca has achieved near celebrity status in his suburban Los Angeles district, as much for his record of giveaways Thanksgiving turkeys, college scholarships, spare boots for firefighters as for anything he has done in Congress. That generosity is made possible by the Joe Baca Foundation, a charity his family set up three years ago to aid local organizations. It provides another benefit, too: helping the Democratic congressman run something akin to a permanent political campaign.

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital® and Chili's® Grill & Bar are tapping into the power of the digital world, making it easier than ever for guests to donate to St. Jude during the seventh annual Create-A-Pepper to Fight Childhood Cancer campaign. September is National Childhood Cancer Awareness month and now through Sept. 30, guests can donate in restaurants nationwide, online, or via text message. Donations made during the Create-A-Pepper campaign support the St. Jude mission of finding cures for children with cancer and other catastrophic childhood diseases.